Preselective transmission control



BEST AVAILABLE COPY G. T. RANDQL PRESELECTIVE TRANSMISSION Feb. 24, 1953m m m. d (M N m m M H W R w T w 0 a m U M 6 n M m V Ml a w O0 G 7 T. H 0W M w: a .H 2 1 i w w& u A M z .IPL/M U GM m w O 7 m v J M :m W L m i. 6b 4 w h l 7 u i i 5 a m Feb. 24, 1953 G T RAND 23,623

OL PRESELECTIVE TRANSMISSION CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES 52INVENTOR:

BY Glenn 7'. Randal, 72a wxwvflcwkn a ATTORNEYS.

Feb. 24, 1953 e T. RANDOL Re. 23,623

PRESELECTIV E TRANSMISSION CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES OriginalFiled Nov. 22, 1948 12 Sheets-Sheet 5 I N VEN TOR.

Glenn TI Randal, BY

ATTORNEYS.

Feb. 24, 1953 G. T. RANDOL 23,523

PREISELECTIVE TRANSMISSION CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES OriginalFiled Nov. 22. 1948 12 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR:

Glenn 7? Randal,

ATTORNEYS.

S E m L on mw m m G U A R 0 F Feb. 24, 1953 PRESELECTIVE TRANSMISSIONCONTROL l2 Sheets-Sheet 5 Original Filed Nov. 22. 1948 Glenn T. Randal,

f4, -1. Va. 6f ATTORNE s.

Feb. 24, 1953 G. "r. RANDOL 23,623

PRESELECTIVE TRANSMISSION CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES Original FiledNov. 22, 1948 12 Sheets-Sheet 6 5- 89 y/ 3 m; m/ 9,;

INVENTOR: Glenn 7? Randal,

ATTORNE Y5.

Feb. 24, 1953 G. T. RANDOL Re. 23,623

PRESEJLECTIVE TRANSMISSION CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES OriginalFiled Nov. 22, 1948 12 Sheets-Sheet 7 INVENTOR: Z9 6A G/enn T. Randal,

E- ,1" mmiu ATTORNEYS.

Feb. 24, 1953 G. T. RANDOL PRESELECTIVE TRANSMISSION CONTROL FORAUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES Original Filed Nov. 22, 1948 12 Sheets-Sheet 8INVENTOR: Glenn 7? Randal,

ATTORNEYS.

Feb. 24, 1953 G. T. RANDOL PRESELECTIVE TRANSMISSION CUNTROL FORAUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES l2 Sheets-Sheet 9 Original Filed Nov. 22, 1948INVENTOR:

Glenn T. Randal, BY QQ MH w azw Feb. 24, 1953 G. T. RANDOL 3,

PRESELECTIVE TRANSMISSION CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES Original FiledNov. 22, 1948 12 Sheets-Sheet 1O 227 zza 232 7 7 11-. 51

INVENTOR: Glenn T. Randal,

Feb. 24, 1953 G. T. RANDOL 23,623

PRESELECTIVE TRANSMISSION CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES a v hli O ma nnhjm IN VEN TOR:

Glenn 7T Randal, BY

QL vfl w ATTORNE 5.

Feb. 24, 1953 G. T. RANDOL 3 PRESEILECTIVE TRANSMISSION CONTROL FORAUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES Original Filed Nov. 22. 1948 12 Sheets-Sheet l2 INVEN TOR:

E. 4 B. By Glenn 7. Randal,

h zi W 4 ATTORNEYS.

Reissued Feb. 24, 1953 PRESELECTIVE TRANSMISSION CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVEVEHICLES Glenn '1'. Randol, Mountain Lake Park, Md.

Original No. 2,572,054, dated October 23, 1951,

Serial No. 61,325, November 22, 1948. Application for reissue February23, 1952, Serial No.

32 Claims.

This invention relates to control means for [a] variable-speed slidinggear transmissions, and more particularly an improved preselectivecontrol means [which will permit] whereby unrestricted preselection of[a] the transmission gear ratios may be efiected, irrespective of theoperated condition of the control actuating means, by amanually-controlled selector mounted for convenience n the steeringcolumn adjacent to the steering wheel of an automobile or the like. Theinvention constitutes an improvement in control means of the generalcharacter disclosed in my Patent No. 2,126,032, issued August 9, 1938,for Motor Vehicle Transmission Control.

A general object of the invention is to produce improved rotatable andlongitudinally shiftable selector members for a preselective controlmeans for a change-speed transmission which will resuit in easierselection of desired speeds, and a more positive axial thrust connectionfor shifting a selected speed gear.

Another object of the invention is to so construct selectors for apreselective control means that the control means can be readilyassociated with any type of transmission having slidable gears orclutches for selectively establishing multiple [unidirectional] speeds.

Yet another object is to so construct an assembly of novel rotatableselectors for a preselective control means such that cooperatingconnecting plungers carried by shiitable elements of a transmission canbe engaged and disengaged from a selector by slight rotative effort, yetwill accommodate a stronger and more durable thrust shifting connectiontherebetween than has heretofore been possible.

A further important object related to that last stated is to provide animproved assembly of novel rotatable selector members for a preselectivetransmission control mechanism wherein the co operating spring-pressedconnecting plungers carried by the shiftable elements of thetransmission can be disengaged from the selector members by slightrotative effort involving two easy camming stages.

A further object is to so construct selector members for shifting theshiftable members of a change-speed gearing to accomplish preselectivecontrol of the speed changes; that cooperat- Matter enclosed in heavybrackets I: appears in the original patent but forms no part of thisreissue specification; matter printed in italics indicates the additionsmade by reissue.

ing connecting plungers carried by the shiftable members may be receivedin deeper cross-recesses in the selector members to thus provideincreased thrust contact therebetween for shifting the shiftable membersthereby, and wherein substantial reduction in the resistance offered bythe selector members is also provided when moving them to theirdifferent speed selecting positions.

A more specific object is to provide a plurality of circumferentialspaced axially extending rods in overlapping relation and cooperatingspring-pressed coupling plungers for selectively connecting associatedshiftable elements [thereto] to said rods for movement in unisontherewith when actuated.

Another object related to that last stated is to produce selectormembers for a preselective transmission control which utilizes roundrods as the overlapping selecting fingers with crossslots therein cut toa depth of substantially half the diameter of the rod to thereby provideadequate abutment surfaces for moving a received connecting plunger.

Another important object is to provide an improved preselecting andshifting mechanism of the general character referred to which willenable the largest possible number of transmission conditions to bepreselected and established unrestrictedly by a single rotation of thepreselec tive mechanism.

Another object of the invention is to so construct an assembly ofselectors for preselecting the different gear drives of a transmissionand provide for their cooperation with yieldable connecting plungersthat misalignment of the selectors and plungers cannot occur.

A further object is to construct a compact assembly of rotatableselectors which will enable selective connections to be made by rotativemovement with more than two shifter members arranged about the peripherythereof.

A still further object is to provide in a preselective transmissioncontrol means, improved means for neutralizing the transmission by themanual member utilized to control the speed selections.

A more specific [Another further] object of the invention related to theobject nert above is to provide an improved preselective control meanswhich will, by operation of a control member, ac

commodate unrestricted preselection of any speed, regardless of thecondition of the changespeed transmission, [on] upon establishment ofany selected speed by means operable independently of the control member[for preselection] and further, to provide a positive neutralization ofthe transmission by a predetermined conditioning of the preselectivecontrol member, and without operation of the speed establishing means.

A further object is to provide a novel preselective control means for[a] change-speed transmissions which will be simple in construction,economical to manufacture and easily associated with existing types ofsynchro-mesh sliding gear transmissions; and further, such a controlmeans [which can] to replace [a] conventional handshifting [lever]operations and thus provide a [vehicle] vehicular operator with [maximumvehicle performance and economy] simplified and efiortless change-speedcontrol for maximum [vehicle] driving performance and economy under allload and. road conditions.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from the followingdescription taken in connection with the accompanying drawing showingseveral structures embodying said invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side view of a power drive control mechanism embodying myinvention, said view showing a motor vehicle friction clutch andsteering column selector control associated with a conventionalchange-speed transmission, the structure shown being conditioned forhigh speed ratio drive with the clutch engaged; I Figure 2 is a viewpartly in longitudinal section and partly broken away, of the mechanismshown in Figure 1, [such] said mechanism being shown associated with a[standard] three-speeds forward and a reverse transmission ofconventional design;

Figure 3 is a view taken on the line 33 of Figure 2, showing the partson the interior of the control mechanism housing;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on the line l4 of Figure 1, showingthe position of parts when high speed drive is selected and madeoperative;

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 1 andshowing details of the selector rack and pinion;

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 66 of Figure 1 andshowing details of the yieldable positioning detent mechanism associatedwith the second and high speed shifting fork and also the manner inwhich a slidable rack is connected to actuate a selector member;

Figure 7 is a sectional view taken on the line 1-1 of Figure 1 andshowing details of the shifting fork coupling plungers and the recessesof the selector members positioned in a common selection field, whichcondition will result by movement of the clutch pedal to its second dashline position as shown in Figure 1;

Figure 8 is a sectional view taken on the line 8-8 of Figure 1 andshowing details of the selector positioning detent mechanism;

Figure 9 is a sectional view taken on the line 9-4 of Figure 7 showingthe gear drive for actuating the selector members by the operation ofthe clutch pedal;

Figure 10 is a view of the rack and pinion mechanism as taken on lineIii-I0 of Figure 7 and showing the position of the parts correspondingto the gear drive condition shown in Figure 9;

Figure 11 is an end elevational view taken from the right end of Figure1;

Figure 12 is a view showing the position of the external actuating armin the position assumed when the clutch pedal is depressed;

Figure 13 is a view imilar to Figure 3 showing the parts carried on theinside of the control mechanism housing in the positions assumed forneutral condition of the preselection lever with the clutch pedal in itsfully depressed position, as shown by the second dash line[d] positionof Figure 1;

Figure 14 is a view similar to Figure 10 showing the position of theinternal rack and pinion mechanism for actuating the selector members inpositions when the clutch pedal is depressed;

Figure 15 is a view of the assembled selectors as taken from the line|5l 5 of Figure 7;

Figure 16 is another view of the assembled selector as taken from theline l6|6 of Figure 7;

Figure 1'7 is an exploded perspective view of the selectors and thegrooved collar shown in Figures 15 and 16;

Figure 18 is a perspective view of the assembled selectors in theirpositions as shown in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4 and 15 [where] wherein highspeed is active;

Figure 19 is another perspective'view of the assembled selectors showingthe selectors rotated to a position disengaging the shifter forkcoupling plunger;

Figure 20 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of a selectorplunger showing the shifting fork coupling plunger engaged in the notchthereof;

Figure 21 is a sectional view similar to Figure 20 but showing theplunger disengaged from the notch when the selectors are rotated in thedirection of the arrow;

Figure 22 is a view similar to Figures 20 and 21, but showing theposition of the shifting member plunger when engaging the shallowlongitudinal groove on the outer diameter of a selector rod before saidrod is moved inwardly to couple the plunger with the registering notch[so that the plunger and associated shifting fork may be moved] formovement in unison to a selected gear-engaged position upon actuation ofthe selectors;

Figure 1A is a side view of a modification of my improved controlmechanism with the parts shown in high speed (direct-drive) position,said view also showing the associted steering column selecting lever ina corresponding position and the associated clutch of the motor vehiclein disengaged position with the clutch pedal fully depressed, and theshift-actuator energized;

Figure 2A is a top view of the mechanism shown in Figure 1 with partsbroken away and in section, said mechanism being associated with aconventional two-speeds forward and a reverse synchro-mesh transmission;

Figure 3A is a view taken on the line 3A--3A of Figure 2A showing theparts carried on the inside of the control mechanism housing;

Figure 4A is a sectional view taken on the line 4A-4A of Figure 1Ashowing details of the selector rack and pinion actuating mechanism;

Figure 5A is a sectional view taken on the line 5A-5A of Figure 4Ashowing details of the selector rack detent mechanism;

Figure 6A is a sectional view taken on the line 6A--6A of Figure 1Ashowing details of the detent positioning means associated with the lowand high gear shifting fork;

Figure 7A is a sectional view taken on the line IA-IA of Figure 3A andshowing details of the yieldable detent positioning means associatedwith the reverse gear shifting fork, and also the selectively operatedinterlocking means for insuring the locking of the reverse gear inneutral position when the forward speeds of the transmission gearing arebeing preselectively controlled;

Figure 8A is a sectional view taken on the line 8A--8A of Figure 3A,showing details of the assembled selectors and the associated yieldableplunger for coupling the low and high gear shifting fork therewith formovement thereby when actuated;

Figure 9A is a view of the ear drive selector actuating connection astaken on line 9A9A of Figure 8A and showing the parts in the positioncorresponding to Figure 1A;

Figure 10A is a view of the internal pinion and rack mechanism forslidably actuating the selectors as viewed on the line lllA-IOA ofFigure 8A, the parts being in positions corresponding to the [gear]drive-connection shown in Figure 9A and external arm and actuating meansas shown in Figure 1A;

Figure 11A is a view of the modified selectors in assembled condition asviewed from line I IA IIA of Figure 8A;

Figure 12A is an exploded perspective view of the modified selectorsshown in Figure 11A; parts being shown in full and partial sections;

Figure 13A is a perspective view of the assembled modified selectorsshown in Figures 11A and 12A;

Figure 14A is a view of the upper left hand portion of Figure 1A showingthe positions of the external lever connections with the selector rackand neutralizing levers when the selecting lever is set in neutralposition;

Figure 15A is a view similar to Figure 3A with an additional showing ofa conventional friction clutch of a motor vehicle, the view showing theparts in neutral position with the clutch engaged by release of theclutch pedal;

Figure 16A is a sectional view imilar to Figure 7A but showing theselectively operated interlocking means of the reverse gear shiftingfork unlocked so that the shifting fork of the reverse gear may beactuated to engage reverse gear and thereby lock the selectors againstrotation until such time as the reverse gear has been neutralized;

Figure 1B is a side view of another selector structure in which thearmature member is eliminated;

Figure 2B is a view of the same structure as shown in Figure 1B, but[looking] viewed from the opposite side;

Figure 3B is a perspective view of the two selector members in axiallyseparated positions;

Figure 4B is a view of the selector members showing said members intheir innermost positions, parts being in section and broken away;

Figure 5B is a cross sectional view taken on the line 5B-5B of Figure4B; and

Figure 6B is another cross sectional view similar to Figure 5B, butshowing the selector members rotated to a position [where] wherein theplungers are [riding] displaced between two rods.

Referring to the drawings in detail and first to the control mechanismdisclosed in Figures 1 to 22, my improved preselective control mechanismis arranged to be associated with a casing mem ber H which takes theplace of the usual side mounted cover plate of a change-speedtransmission mechanism T enclosed within the housing l2 (Figure 2). Thecasing H is bolted to the housing by bolts l3. The change-speedtransmission with which the improved control mechanism is associated isshown in Figure 2 as a conventional [standard] three-speeds forward anda reverse gearing of the synchro-rnesh type and equipped with ahorizontally pivoted interlocking bar 13 for preventing simultaneousmovement of the two gear-shifting forks [away] from neutral positions.Briefly described, the gearing ha a main driving gear H at the forwardend of the housing I2, this gear being driven through a friction clutchI5 associated with the engine or other power plant of a motor vehicle.The engine crankshaft I6 is connected to drive one element (I of theclutch I5, and the other and movable element is of the clutch isarranged to drive the gearing driving shaft I! with which is integrallymounted the previously mentioned driving gear II. The transmission has acountershaft sleeve 20 which is constantly driven from the driving gearl4 by means of a gear 2|. The sleeve carries a second speed gear 22, alow speed gear 23 and a reverse gear 24. In alignment with the drivingshaft I9 of the gearing is the driven shaft 25, to which latter shaft isconnected the propeller shaft (not shown) of the vehicle fortransferring power to the [rear] driving wheels of the vehicle. Thedriven shaft of the transmission has rotatively mounted thereon a secondspeed gear 26 constantly meshing with the countershaft second speed gear22. At the rear of the gear 25 the driven shaft is splined and slidablymounted on the splines is a combined low and reverse gear 21. The gear21 is arranged to slidably mesh with the low speed gear 23 on thecountershaft to establish low speed drive by sliding movement in forwarddirection from a neutral position, as shown in Figure 2. When movedrearwardly it meshes with an idling gear 28 which is constantly meshedwith reverse gear 2| on the countershaft to establish reverse speeddrive. The second speed gear 26 on the driven.

shaft is spaced from the driving gear I and interposed between thesegears is a slidable double-clutch member 29 splined to the driven shaft.

The double-clutch member 29, when moved forwardly as viewed in Figure 2,is arranged to connect the driven shaft directly with the driving shaftfor high speed or direct-drive, said clutch member 29 having teeth 30for meshing with teeth 3| integral with the gear l4. When the clutchmember is moved rearwardly, clutch teeth 32 thereon will mesh withclutch teeth 33 on the second speed gear 26, to thu connect this gear tothe driven shaft and establish second gear drive by way of thecountershaft. There is associated with the double-clutch member 29 andthe clutch teeth 3| and 33 the usual friction type synchronizing means(not shown in detail) whereby smooth engagement of the various clutchteeth is accomplished in a well known manner. The change-speedtransmission will be in neutral condition so that no power can betransmitted therethrough whenever the double-clutch member 29 isdisengaged from the clutch teeth 3| and 33 and when the combined low andreverse gear 21 is disengaged from both low gear 23 and idle gear 28.

In Figure 2 of the drawings the gearing is shown as conditioned for highspeed or directdrive. As will be noted, the double-clutch member 29 ismoved forwardly so as to connect the driving shaft I9 of the gearingdirectly with the driven shaft of the gearing. The power of the enginecan be disconnected from the changespeed transmission at any time bydisengaging the engine clutch I shown in Figure 1, and this will beaccomplished by the usual foot-operated clutch pedal P which, by way ofexample, also serves in part as the shift-actuator. The powertransmitting clutch I5 will be engaged when the clutch pedal is in thefull line position shown in Figure 1. When the clutch pedal is moved tothe position shown in dashed lines at "A, the clutch will be initiallydisengaged and when moved to the dashed lines shown at B in Figure 1,the clutch will be further disengaged and the additional travel of theclutch pedal [will be employed] utilized to operate my improvedpreselective control mechanism to be hereinafter described. Theconnection between the clutch pedal and the clutch comprises across-shaft 34 to which the clutch pedal is keyed, and mounted on thisshaft is a clutch releasing fork 35 for engaging the collar of themovable element I8 of the [main] clutch 15.

The casing member I I is of general rectangular cup-shape in form andpositioned longitudinally therein so as to extend across the hollowportion is a selector shaft 31 journaled at its opposite ends in thecasing. This shaft is arranged to be rotated to five different positionsto preselectively control the condition of the gearing for reverse, low,second and high speeds, and neutral, [that is, the] or inoperativecondition of the gearing. To readily locate these positions, there isprovided a yieldable detent mechanism for association with the rear endof the shaft. As best shown in Figure 8, the shaft has pinned thereto acollar 38, provided with five peripheral circumferentially spacedrecesses designated as L," H, N, S" and R, to thus indicate the fiveselective conditions of the gearing. Cooperating with these recesses isa spring-biased round-headed detent 39 mounted in a bore of the casingmember closed by a threaded plug 40.

The shaft 31 is arranged to be rotated to its five different positionsby means of a hand-lever HL which is mounted on the steering column 4Iof the vehicle, as shown in Figure l. The connection for rotating saidshaft by operation of the handle HL embodies a slidable rack 42 mountedin the forward part of the casing member and arranged to be at rightangles to the shaft. The teeth 43 of this rack (see Figure 5) mesh withteeth 46 of a sector gear 41 secured to the forward end of the shaft 31.The rack extends out of the upper side of the casing member II and isprovided at its outer end with a slot 48. This slot receives the roundedend 49 of one arm 50 of a bell-crank lever 5I which is pivotally mountedto the upper exterior portion of the casing member by a pivot pin 52.The other arm 53 of this bellcrank lever, as best shown in Figure 1, iscohnected' by means of a link 54 to the outer end of an arm 55 securedto the lower end of a shaft 56 positioned parallel to the steeringcolumn. The lower end of this shaft 56 is journaled in a bracket 51attached to the steering column, and the upper end is journaled in theindicating plate 58 attached to the upper end of the steering columnjust beneath the steering wheel (not shown). The shaft 56 is arranged toextend above the indicating plate and has provided on this end a pointer59 to indicate the various positions of the selector shaft of thecontrol mechanism. These positions are shown in Figure 1 by the lettersR," S, N, H, and L for the five conditions of the gearing. The shaft 56,just below the plate, has secured to it the hand lever HL, alreadyreferred to. Whenever the pointer is opposite any of the letters on theindicating plate, the shaft will be so positioned that the previouslyreferred to detent 39 will be resting in a correspondingly marked recessin the collar 38 carried by the selector shaft and, as will becomeapparent, the indicated condition of the transmission will bepreselected or established.

Also mounted in the casing member I I on opposite sides of the selectorshaft 31 are two rods 60 and GI, said rods being mounted in the ends ofthe casing member and pinned thereto so as to be non-rotatable. Theupper rod 60 is arranged to have slidably mounted thereon the twoshifting forks 62 and 63 for controlling the two slidable speed ratiochanging members of the change-speed transmission[,]; namely, theslidable double-clutch member 29 and the combined low and reverse gear21. The shifting fork 52 controls the clutch member 29 and the shiftingfork 63 controls the slidable gear 21, all as best shown in Figure 2.The shifting fork 62 is slidably mounted on the forward portion of rod60 by means of hub 64 which has an angular integral boss 65 in a bore ofwhich is mounted a selector connecting plunger 66 backed by a coilspring 61. The axis of the plunger is arranged to be radial with respectto the axis of the selector shaft 31. The shifting fork 53 has a hub 68which is slidable on the rear portion of rod 60 and a semicylindricalextension portion 69 projects around the selector shaft 31 and hassliding support on the other rod BI by a curved end III as can be bestseen in Figure 7. The outer end of the semicylindrical extensionadjacent the rod BI is formed with a bore radial with respect to theaxis of the selector shaft, and within this bore is a plunger II backedby a spring I2. The plunger II is arranged to be diametrically oppositethe plunger 66 to thus produce a balanced assembly. Each shifting forkhas three positions to perform its function and, in order that thesethree posi-- tions may be readily located, the shifting fork 52 for theslidable double-clutch member 29 carries a spring-biased detent 13 whichis arranged to cooperate with three recesses I4, 15 and I6 in the rod60. Similarly, the shifting fork 53 for the combined low and reversespeed gear 21 carries a spring-biased detent 11 which is arranged tocooperate with three recesses 18, I9 and 8D in the rod 60. The locatingdetents for the shifting forks in the recesses of the rod are variouslyshown in Figures 3, 4, 6 and 13.

The rotatable selector shaft 31 carries two selector members generallyindicated by the letters S and S said members being shown in detail inFigures 15, 16, 1'7, 18 and 19. These selector members are arranged tobe slidable longitudinally on the axis of the shaft in oppositedirections, both toward and away from each other, and, as will bepresently described, said selector members are also arranged to berotatable in unison with the selector shaft 31.

Selector member S comprises a collar 8| slidable on shaft 31 andprovided with an annular groove 82. From this collar there extendsinwardly, in an axial direction, two round rods 83 and 84, said rodsbeing spaced so as to be on opposite sides of the axis of the collar.Rod 83 is provided with a cross-slot 85 and rod 84 is provided with across-slot 88, said slot 85 being arranged to receive the plunger 88 andthe slot 86 being arranged to receive plunger II whenever these rods arerotated to positions opposite the plungers. The selector member S issimilar to the selector member S comprising a collar 81 slidable onshaft 31 and having a peripheral groove 88. From the collar two roundrods 88 and 98 extend inwardly in an axial direction. The rod 88 has across-slot 9| for receiving the plunger 66 and the rod 98 has across-slot 92 for receiving the plunger 'II. Rods 89 and 98 are arrangedto extend between the rods 83 and 84 of selector S and all the rods arearranged to be in a circle which surrounds the selector shaft 31.

In order that the selector members can be rotated by the selector shaft,there is provided a cylindrical collar, to be referred to as an armaturemember 93, which is secured to the selector i shaft by a pin 94. Thisarmature member has four axially extending grooves in its surface, saidgrooves being slightly greater in curvature than a semi-cylinderindicated by the numerals 95, 98, 91 and 98. The grooves are of suchsize as to slidably receive the four rods, with rod 83 received ingroove 85, rod 89 received in groove 96, rod 84 received in groove 91and rod 98 received in groove 38, all as shown in Figures 15, 16, 18 and19.

When the selector members are in their innermost positions, the slots ofthe various rods will be in circular alignment. When the selectormembers are moved outwardly with respect to each other, the rods willstill remain in the grooves of the armature member, but the slots in therods 83 and 84 will be moved outwardly in one direction from thecircular alignment field and the slots in the rods 89 and 98 will bemoved outwardly in the opposite direction from the circular alignmentfield thus placing said slots in staggerad circular relationship.

The end of each rod is beveled, said rod 83 having a beveled end 99, rod84 having a beveled end I88, rod 89 a beveled end IM and rod 98 abeveled end I82. The purpose of the bevels is to enable the rods toslide under a plunger in the event the plunger should be axially alignedwith a rod [and] when spaced outwardly from the end thereof, as is acondition that occurs during preselection prior to shifting. The rods ofthe various selector members are also provided with axially extendinggrooves on their exposed surfaces, said rod 83 having the groove I83,rod 84 the groove I84, rod 89 the groove I85 and rod 98 the groove I86.These grooves are provided to enable a plunger to ride on the surface ofa rod without producing forces tending to rotate the selector membersand the selector shaft 31, or to shift out of alignment with a connectedrod and its slot.

In connection with the selector members and the shifting forks it is tobe noted that thecollars 8| and 81 not only function to support therods, but also are employed to neutralize the shifting forks 62 and 63.The hubs of the shifting forks have an axial length equal to thedistance between the collars of the selector members when said membersare in their innermost positions, and said hubs are arranged to projectinto the axial path of movement of the collars. Thus, when a shiftingfork is in any position establishing a gear ratio, then upon movement ofthe selector members from their outermost positions (see Figure 3) totheir innermost posil0 tions (see Figure 13) the shifting fork will beenaged by a selector member collar and moved to its neutral position. Bythis arrangement neutralization of the transmission will always beinsured whenever the selector members are moved to their innermostpositions.

As already mentioned, the selector members are to be moved inwardlysimultaneously toward each other and also outwardly away from each othersimultaneously. To accomplish this, the casing member II has mountedtherein two companion racks I81 and I88, shown in detail in Figures 10and 14. The teeth of both racks mesh with a gear I89, the teeth of rackI81 meshing on one side of the gear and the teeth of rack I88 meshing onthe other side of the gear. The racks are arranged to slide in a shallowtrough in the casing member, said trough being opposite the selectorshaft and selector members. A plate II8 maintains the racks in thetrough for sliding movement. The rack I88 carries a projection III whichis received in the peripheral groove 88 of the collar of the selectormember S and the rack I81 carries a similar projection II2 arranged tobe received in the peripheral groove 82 of the collar of selector memberS The rack operating gear I89 is secured to a shaft II3 journaled in thecasing member II and extending into a chamber II4 closed by a cover H5.The portion of the shaft II 3 in the chamber II4 has secured theretoanother gear I I6, and this gear is arranged to have meshing engagementwith teeth of a selector gear IIl secured to a shaft II8 journaled in aboss of the previously mentioned plate II5 which covers the chamber II4.Thus, it will be seen, by oscillating the shaft H8 and with it thesector ear III, the gears H8 and I83 will be oscillated and consequentlythe racks I81 and I 88 so moved that the projections III and H2,respectively, will be moved simultaneously away from or toward eachother. Figure 10 shows the racks moved outwardly and Figure 14 shows theracks moved inwardly. Since the racks are connected to selector members,these members will have corresponding inward or outward movement,depending upon the direction of rotation of the gear I89.

Shaft II8 on its outer end has secured thereto a double arm lever I I9.The upper arm I28 of this lever is connected by a link I 2| with theclutch pedal P, already referred to and shown in Figure l. Theconnection between the link I2I and the arm I28 is made by means of apin I22 in the arm and a slot I23 in the end of the link, thus providinga lost-motion connection. The lost-motion is suflicient to [allow]accommodate free movement of the rod by clutch pedal P without operatingthe arm H9 so that the pedal can be moved from its full line positionshown in Figure 1 to the dotted line position A," also shown in Figure1, and thus [allow for] cause disengagement of the friction clutchbefore there is any movement of the arm I I9. When the pedal P is movedfrom the position A to the position B, the arm II9 will be moved and,consequently, the gear I89 rotated in a counterclockwise direction fromthe position shown in Figure 10 to the position shown in Figure 14, withthe result that the racks will move the two selector members inwardly.The extent of movement of the arm II 9 is limited by means of a pin I24carried on the plate H5 and received in an arcuate slot I25 at the hubof the double arm lever H9.

The other arm I26 of the double arm lever II9 extends in a directionopposite from the arm I20. Connected to this arm is a rod I21 which isarranged to slide in a pivoted abutment I28 carried on the exterior ofthe casing member II. Surrounding the rod is a relatively powerful[coil] pre-energized shifter-spring I29, the ends of which are arrangedto seat in cups I30, one of which abuts against the abutment I28 and theother cup is arranged to abut against a shoulder on the rod adjacent itsend connected with the arm I26. With this arrangement, it is seen thatwhen the double arm lever H9 is rotated by the clutch pedal to thus movethe selector members inwardly, the [strong] shift-spring I29 will beadditionally compressed and energy will be stored up. When the clutchpedal P is released [and allowed to move] from position 8" to positionA, the spring I29 will expand rapidly to its normally pre-energizedcondition and thus move the double arm lever H9 in a reverse direction,which will result in the gear I09 being rotated in a counter-clockwisedirection from the position shown in Figure 14 to the position shown inFigure 10, thereby causing the selector members to move outwardly. Thestop pin I24 extends into the arcuate slot I25 to limit the extent ofrotation of double arm lever I I9 by the clutch pedal in one directionand by the spring I29 in the other direction, to thus preventrotational-binding of the selector members S and S at the completion ofa shift to either extreme positions thereof so that preselection of afuture speed may be accomplished unrestrictedly.

Operation of control mechanism shown in Figures 1 to 22 incl.

From the foregoing detailed description of the structure comprising myimproved control mechanism, the manner of control of the transmission,although believed to be apparent, will be briefly described. Inconnection with the controlling of the transmission it is to be notedthat the selector member S will be employed to select and establish highand low speeds, and the selector member S will be employed to select andestablish second and reverse speeds. The rods of the selector membersand the shifter plungers are so arranged that only one plunger can beconnected to a selector member at any time. The plunger 66 is capable ofcooperating only with the slots in the rods 03 and 89 and the plunger IIis capable of cooperating only with the slots in the rods 84 and 90.This cooperative relationship results from the rotating of the selectormembers by the selector shaft and the hand-lever HL in a limited manner.When the selector members are rotated so that the plunger 66 is capableof cooperating with the slot 95 in the rod 09, high speed will beselected and this will be indicated by the positioning of the handleverso that the pointer indicates H' on the indicating plate. The plunger 56will be capable of cooperating with the slot 9| in the rod 09 when thehand-lever is positioned so that the pointer indicates S on theindicating plate. The plunger II will be able to cooperate with the slot86 in the rod 84 when the hand-lever is positioned so that the pointerindicates L on the indicating plate. Also, the plunger 1| will becapable of cooperating with the slot 92 in the rod 90 when thehand-lever is placed in a position so that the pointer indicates R onthe in dicating plate. When the hand-lever is in a position so that thepointer indicates N on the indicia plate neither of the plungers 56 norII will be in a position [where] wherein it can cooperate with a slot inany of the rods. Under such conditions the plunger will be riding on thearmature member between the rods 83 and 89 and the plunger II will beriding on the armature member between the rods 84 and 90.

Whenever the clutch pedal P is released to control the clutch I5 intoengaged condition, it will so control the selector members that saidmembers will be in their outermost positions; that is, they will bespread apart to the fullest extent, as is shown in Figures 3, 15 and 16,for example. When the clutch pedal P is depressed to its fullest extent;that is, to the position B indicated in Figure 1, the clutch will befirst disengaged and then the selector members will be moved inwardly totheir fullest extent, such inward position being shown for example inFigure 13. Fully depressing the clutch pedal will also result in thespring I29 being additionally .compressed, but only after clutchdisengagement.

If the clutch pedal should now be released, spring I29 will expand topre-energized condition and as a result thereof the selector memberswill be moved outwardly, thus returning to their spread apart position.

In further respect to the operation of the control mechanism, let itfirst be assumed that the hand-lever HL is in a position [where] whereinthe pointer indicates N." Under such conditions the transmission gearingis selected for neutral. The gearing may be actually in neutralcondition if the clutch pedal had been moved to the "8 position eitherprior to the hand-lever being moved to the N" position or after thehand-lever is moved to the N position.

If the gearing is conditioned so that a speed is established at the timethe hand-lever is moved to the N position with the clutch remainingengaged; that is. without depressing the clutch pedal, then there willonly be a preselection of neutral without an establishment thereof.Suppose, for example, the lever were in the H' position prior to itsbeing moved tothe "N position, and high speed is established. Under suchconditions the shifting fork 62 would be in the position shown inFigures 2 and 3 and the plunger 66 carried by the shifting fork 62 wouldbe in the slot 85 of the rod 03, all as indicated in Figure 7. Now, bythe placing of the hand-lever in the N position, the selector memberswill be rotated so that the plunger 65 will be moved out of the slot 05of the rod 83 and up onto the cylindrical surface of the armaturebetween the rods 83 and 09. When the clutch pedal is fully depressed tothe B position, the selector memhere will have been moved inwardly totheir fullest extent. As the selector members are moved inwardly thecollar on selector member S will engage the hub of the shifting fork 62and thus carry it inwardly so that the double-clutch element 29 will bedeclutched from the teeth on the driving gear I4 of the transmission.When the clutch pedal is released and the selector members again causedto move outwardly by action of spring I29, the gearing will remain inneutral since the plunger 66 is riding on the cylindrical surface of thearmature member between the rods 83 and 89. If the clutch pedal P hadbeen fully depre sed to the position "B" and held in such positionbefore the hand-lever HL had been moved to the N" position from the Hposition. then the gearing would have been neutralized by the clutchpedal movement in the manner described, with the plunger 66 remaining inthe slot 85 of rod 83. The gearing is caused to remain in neutral afterthe hand-lever HL is moved to the N position.

Regardless of the condition of the transmission gearing, any othercondition of the [transmission] gearing can always be preselected at anytime without any restriction whatsoever. If the gearing should be inneutral, for example, and low speed is desired, the hand-lever will bemoved to the L position. This will cause such a rotation of the selectormembers and the armature member as to place the rod 84 of the selectormember S underneath the plunger ll. As the selectors and armature arerotated, the plunger ll will first enoage [ride on] the culindricai suface of the armature member until [it comes to] the rod 84 [and then]engages the plunger which will then yield and ride up onto rod 84.' Theslot 86 of the rod 84 will not be opposite the plun er II when theplunger is up on the rod since the clutch pedal has not yet beendepressed to move the selectors to their spread apart positions. Figure16 shows the position of the plunger H before the selectors are rotatedand before the plunger is caused to be placed on rod 84. As thehand-lever is rotated to the L position. then the exposed cylindricalsurface of rod 84 engages the plun er and cams it upwardly onto the rod[where] wherein it comes to rest in the groove Ill4 on said rod. The lowspeed has now been preselected.

To establish this preselected speed. all that needs to be done is tofully depress the clutch pedal to the position "B," beyond thedisengaged condition of the clutch, and then release the clutch pedal.As a result thereof the selector members S and S will be first movedtoward each other and to their innermost positions during depressing ofthe clutch pedal. As the selector member S moves inwardly, the rod 84will slide axially underneath the plunger H and when it reaches itinnermost position said plunger will drop into slot 86 in said rod.During subsequent release of the clutch pedal the selector members willbe caused to move apart by action of the power spring I29, prior toengagement of the clutch, and consequently the selector member S willcarry with it the plunger H since it is engaged in the slot 86. Thisaxial movement of the plunger 1| will cause shifting of the fork 63forwardly and thu establish low speed by meshing gear 21 withcountershaft gear 23.

If the gearing should be in low speed and second speed should bedesired, this speed can be preselected in an unrestricted manner merelyby moving the hand-lever HL to the S position. When the hand-lever ismoved to the S position, the selector members and the armature memberwill be rotated to such a position that the plunger 66 will project intogroove 96 of the armature member ahead of the rod 89 of selector memberS due to the fact that the selector members are spaced apart, the clutchpedal not having yet been fully depressed. When the selector members arerotated from the L position to the "S position, the plunger 1| which wasin the slot 86 will be disengaged from said slot and will ride back ontothe cylindrical surface of the armature rnember 93, thus disconnectingthe rod 84 from the shifting fork 63.

To establish the preselected second speed, the clutch pedal will now befull depres ed and re leased. Depressing the clutch pedal wll bring theselector members to their innermost positions and as the selector memberS moves inwardly its collar will engage the hub of the shifting fork 63and carry it inwardly so as to disengage the gear 21 from thecountershaft gear 23. As the selector member S moves inwardly the rod 89thereof will slide beneath the plunger 66 which is facilitated bybeveled end I00, and when the selector member reaches its innermostposition, the plunger 66 will drop into the slot 91. The plunger 66 willthus connect the shifting fork to the selector member S for subsequentsliding movement therewith at the time the low speed is neutralized.When the clutch pedal is released, the selector members will be movedapart by spring I29 and as the selector member S moves outwardly it willcarry with it shifting fork 62. The double-clutch member 29 of thetransmission gearing will thus be moved rearwardly and clutch the gear25 to the driven shaft 25 [and] to establish second speed.

If preselection should not be desired prior to neutralization of anactive speed, then of course an established gear, such as the low speed,can be neutralized by depressing the clutch pedal and then, while theclutch pedal is fully depressed, the hand-lever HL can be set to the 5"position. This setting of the hand-lever will result in the armature andselecting members being rotated so that the plunger 66 will drop intothe slot SI of rod 89. It will be noted that when the clutch pedal isdepressed, the selector members will be in their innermost position andthus, as these selector members are rotated, the slot 9| will be incircular alignment with the plunger 60 and thus the plunger can movedirectly into the slot from off the armature surface as the armature isrotated. When the clutch pedal is released, the selector member S willbe connected with the shifting fork 62 and as it moves outwardly byaction of the power-spring 129 it will establish the second speed.

If second speed should be established and it is desired to preselecthigh speed, this will be accomplished by merely moving the hand-lever HLto the H position without fully depressing the clutch pedal. Such willrotate the selector members and the armature member, so that the plunger66 will be cammed out of the slot 9| onto the cylindrical surface of thearmature member and then drop into the groove 95 of the armature forwardof the end of the rod 83 of the selector member S It will be noted thatwhen the second speed is established and the friction clutch l5 engaged,the selector members S and S will be spread apart and, consequently, theplunger 66 will be in such a position with respect to the position ofthe rod 83 that it cannot ride up onto the rod 83, but must drop intothe groove 95 in the armature member. The rounded end of the plunger 66will engage the top edges of the groove 95 as the plunger 66 cannotextend into the groove any farther than would be possible if it werereceived in a selector rod slot.

When the clutch pedal is now depressed and released to accomplish theshifting from second to high speeds, the selector members are movedinwardly and outwardly. As the selector member S moves inwardly itscollar will engage the hub of the shifting fork 52 and thus neutralizesecond speed by moving the double-clutch member 29 to its declutchedposition. As the selector member S moves inwardly, the end of its rod 83will engage the plunger 66 which is projecting into the groove 95 of thearmature in which the rod slides and the beveled surface 98 thereon willenable the rod to slide underneath the plunger 56 and bring the plungerup onto the top of the rod and into the shallow groove I03 on said rod.When the selector member S reaches its innermost position, the plungerwill then drop into the slot 85 in rod 83 and thus produce a connectionbetween the selector member and the shifting fork 62. When the clutchpedal is released and the selector members are caused to move outwardlyby the action of the spring I29, the selector member [s] S will carrywith it the shifting fork B2 and thus establish high speed, whichcondition is shown in Figures 2, 3 and 15 as an example of anestablished speed condition for the control mechanism.

Of course, [second] high speed need not be preselected while-secondspeed is active unless desired, as it can be selected after the gearingis neutralized by moving the clutch pedal to the position B." Under suchconditions [the gearing] second speed will be neutralized by the clutchpedal and then upon a subsequent movement of the hand-lever HL from theS position to the H position, the plunger 65 will be caused to bedisengaged from the slot ill and directly engaged with the slot 85 ofthe rod 83 since the selector members, by the movement of the clutchpedal, have previously been moved to their innermost positions.

From the foregoing description of the operations of establishing low,second and high speeds, [either] by preselection [or by selection] whileanother speed drive is active or after the gearing is neutralized byfully depressing the clutch pedal, it is believed to be completely clearas to how the improved preselective control mechanism operates. Inpreselecting, the rotation of the selector members will always [place]register a plunger in proper [axial] position so that when the selectormembers are moved inwardly to neutralize an established speed, theselector members will become axially positioned so that the desiredplunger will drop into the proper slot in a rod of a selector member,depending upon the gear ratio which is preselected. The plunger to beconnected with a rod will assume a position in alignment with the rodbefore the selectors are moved inwardly so that the rod can slide underthe plunger and bring the slot into position to receive the plunger whenthere is a subsequent movement of the selectors inwardly by movement ofthe clutch pedal to position B. It will be particularly noted that thereis no restriction whatsoever on the operation of the gear selectinglever, regardless of whether or not the gearing is in neutral or a speedis established, or regardless of whether or not the clutch I5 is engagedor disengaged. This is very important, since if a speed should have beenpreselected before the clutch pedal was depressed and then the operatorshould have a change of mind and desire a speed other than the onepreselected, this new speed may be selected after the clutch pedal hasbeen depressed and it will be established whenever the clutch pedal isreleased. Also, it is believed to be apparent that if a speed isestablished and another speed preselected, this preselected speed neednot be used if it should be desired to have still another speed, as suchother speed can be preselected at any time. The transmission gearingwill always be conditioned to whatever speed is indicated by the pointerfor the hand lever whenever the clutch pedal is [allowed to be] releasedfrom the position B."

In connection with the improved preselective control mechanism, it isfurther noted that the rotation of the selector members is accomplishedin an easy manner. The rounded ends of the plungers facilitate rotationof the armature member. The plungers also can easily be cammed up toride on the exposed cylindrical surfaces of any of the rods carried bythe selector members. Whenever a plunger is in a slot in the rod, it canalso be easily moved out of the slot onto the cylindrical surface of thearmature member. Even if a plunger is not in a slot in a rod, but isprojecting into a groove of the armature member in which the rod slides,it can be cammed out of this groove as easily as it is cammed out of aslot. A plunger will never project into a groove of the armature memberany greater distance than it projects into the slot in a rod. Theeffortless manner in which a plunger cooperates with a rod, itscross-slot and the armature surface, is well illustrated by Figures 20,21 and 22 which show, as an example, plunger and rod 83 employed inestablishing high speed. In Figure 20 the plunger 65 is shown as restingin the slot 85 of the rod 83, thus establishing a connection betweenthe'plunger and the rod so that the rod can move the plunger and theshifting fork which carries it. It will be noted that the plungerextends into the slot to a depth substantially half the diameter of therod 83. Consequently, there is considerable surface of the plunger inengagement with the shoulder means established by the slot, thusproducing a good bite" on the flat side of the plunger so there will beno danger of any disengagement between the rod and the plunger during ashifting operation. Figure 21 shows the plunger riding on thecylindrical surface of the armature 93. It has been cammed out of theslot 85 of the rod 83 by a rotation of the armature member in thedirection of the arrow. It will be noted that the bottom of the slot 85is curved so as to conform with the curvature of the rounded end of theplunger 65. Thus, whenever the armature is rotated with the plunger inthe slot, the plunger will be moved in an easy stage out of the slot andup onto the armature surface. In Figure 22 the plunger is shown in acondition [where] wherein it is riding on top of the rod 83 and in theshallow longitudinal groove I03 thereof, which, as already mentioned, isemployed to give an axial alignment seat for the end of the plunger andthus prevent the plunger from producing forces tending to rotate thearmature from its selected position. When the selector members and thearmature member are rotated from a position such as that shown in Figure21 to the position shown in Figure 22 to bring the plunger into thegroove I03 on the rod, it will be noted that the plunger will contactthe exposed curved cylindrical surface of the rod as the armature memberis rotated and will then be cammed upwardly and into the groove I03 byengagement between two oppositely curved surfaces.

Description of control mechanism shown by Figures 1A to 16A incl.

' there are two selector members which are also

